Very heavy, makes carrying your camera around less and less desirable with every day that passes. During the summer the difference is even more noticeable.

I had people commenting on the fact that they felt intimidated by the size of the lens. It is difficult to go unnoticed for candid or street photography.

Picture quality is great, but (at least my copy) does not feel as “exceptional” as other reviews made me to expect. I cannot see any notable difference in the pictures when compared to lenses that cost a fifth of what this one costs, enlarged to 100 % side by side in Adobe LightRoom when the same camera body is used.

For me the “value for money” just isn’t there, especially in this economy. Do yourself a favor and stick to a DX body and lenses between $200 and $600. Nothing wrong there and no one will notice the difference in the photos. Just get out there and take pictures rather than spending all your money on overpriced equipment and be left with no money to travel, (unless you are a pro).

Hey, just my 5 cents.

Jul 8, 2010

Kurt JonesOfflineImage Upload: Off

Registered: Oct 19, 2002Location: United StatesPosts: 5052

Review Date: Apr 10, 2010

Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $1,400.00
| Rating: 9

Pros:

Sharp !! very low flare due to excellent coatings. Did I say SHARP !

Cons:

still prefer internal zooming but overall no negatives so far

I just switched over to Nikon from 20 years of Canon 'L' use.
This lens replaced 4-5 L primes and did it WELL.
Very happy with the new Nano Nikon glass !

Apr 10, 2010

palnaOfflineImage Upload: Off

Registered: Mar 8, 2010Location: DenmarkPosts: 0

Review Date: Apr 9, 2010

Recommend? yes |
Price paid: Not Indicated
| Rating: 10

Pros:

Great build. Sharp right open.

Cons:

maybe a little heawy.

I come from canon 5d mark II and 24-105 L. I must say that I am impressed with this lens on D3s. It is fantastic sharp from 2.8 and the aperture 4 is a miracle. It has a nice bokeh. I can highly recommend this lens to anyone considering buying this lens.

Apr 9, 2010

robertw164OfflineImage Upload: Off

Registered: Jan 25, 2005Location: United StatesPosts: 7

Review Date: Mar 28, 2010

Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $1,200.00
| Rating: 10

Pros:

Super sharp, fast focus, VR, good tripod collar

Cons:

Price & weight but you expect that.

This lens is everything a pro caliber fast lens should be. Very sharp, fast focus, smooth zoom, it's all good. Wouldn't mind if were a bit cheaper and lighter but for indoor sports action on a D700, there is no equal - sorry Canon.

Mar 28, 2010

jolahernOfflineImage Upload: Off

Registered: Oct 26, 2005Location: IrelandPosts: 236

Review Date: Feb 6, 2010

Recommend? yes |
Price paid: Not Indicated
| Rating: 10

Pros:

Sharp throughout the focal length, even at f/2.8. No barrel distortion problems compared to other zoom lenses in range.

Cons:

Not as sharp as the 14-24mm at 24mm, but then what is?

I moved from Canon to Nikon having used the Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 and Canon 24-105mm. Was never truly happy with either, the 24-70mm went back to Canon for adjustment, came back decent sharp at 70mm, but 24mm was not as good. For landscapes the 24mm end suffered in the corners.
The 24-105mm was a sharper lens, but suffered from horrible barrel distortion at the 24mm end.
The Nikon is brilliant, sharp from 24 to 70mm and at f/2.8, it is also a bit lighter than the Canon 24-70mm f/2.8.
I started wedding photography last year and this was one of the reasons for moving to Nikon, it sits on my D3 with a SB-900 as the main workhorse for wedding work and I have complete faith in it and that set up.
For landscape work the 14-24mm is sharper, but then that is an outstanding piece of optics, but it is only a 2x zoom while the 24-70mm is a 3x zoom, also the 24-70mm can take filters which is why is sees more use than the 14-24mm for landscape work.

Cost continues to be the only prohibition. Not light either- but both aspects are far from being deal breakers. Embrace the heft.

Feb 4, 2010

Fred AmicoOfflineImage Upload: Off

Registered: Nov 18, 2006Location: United StatesPosts: 260

Review Date: Jan 29, 2010

Recommend? yes |
Price paid: Not Indicated
| Rating: 9

Pros:

Very sharp lens with good color fidelity.

Cons:

Heavy and somewhat expensive, but you do get what you paid for.

This lens shines on a full frame camera. It has turned out to be my most used lens on a D700. Although it makes for a heavy combo with the D700, it's worth it to me because of how sharp this lens is. I've had mine for a little over a year now, and am always impressed when I review pictures I've taken with it.

There have been some reports of sticky or stiff zoom rings with this lens, but mine does not exhibit this behavior.

Jan 29, 2010

spxxxxOfflineImage Upload: Off

Registered: Jul 26, 2006Location: United KingdomPosts: 537

Review Date: Jan 6, 2010

Recommend? yes |
Price paid: Not Indicated
| Rating: 10

Pros:

Razor sharp - fast focus - great colour and contrast

Cons:

None

Got this lens as soon as it was released and have used it for the remainder of the wedding season.

It is razor sharp and the colours and contrast are a definite step up from the older model - which in itself was excellent.

Build quality is what you have come to expect from Nikon professional offerings and even though expensive performs excellently.

This may be the best lens I own. I find it to be sharper than my 70-200 f/2.8 VR and even my 50 f1.8 prime.
This lens is great and if you have a full frame camera this covers just about everything you need in a walk around lens. I carry this on my d700 with the 70-200 on my d90 (to shoot it in its sweet spot and for a little extra reach) and it is a great set up. This lens is well worth its price and the trouble you may go to finding one in stock.
However it is a pusher zoom so it does extend at the edges of the focal range, longest at 24, non extended at 50 and halfway extended at 70. It requires me to keep the hood on to avoid accidental damage and unfortunately in inclement weather it is a very big downside. However despite that it still receives a 10 rating from me because of its amazing sharpness and autofocus capabilities. I find it to be just as sharp at f/2.8 as at f/4 or f/5.6 which is really amazing and useful.

-Lens shadow visible when used at wideangle with the D700 popup flash (goes away at 35mm) Why does this lens extend when going wide?
-Got some moisture in front element. That part could easily have been better sealed!
-Lubricants malfunctioned one day, causing very stiff zooming (went away in a day or 2, probably caused by moisturous environment)
-Quite big!
-Expensive!

This lens is very good. It has the best sharpness @ F2.8 I have ever seen in a zoomlens, it has fast & accurate focus and has little vignetting.

Build quality is good / very good, but the front element could have been better sealed. Mine got a little moisture there which could have been prevented, if of course I didnt place it lens down in a backpack that had water in the bottom, but could also have been prevented if Nikon just sealed the front part. Still it IS a 1450 euro lens, so why not add one more seal for that price?

Also it appeared that the lubricants inside the lens got too dry or something when I used it in a moisture environment one day. When I was pointing up and going to 24mm, the lens got really stiff and almost felt like it got stuck! Don't really know what happened. Probably a moisturous environment caused the lubricants to stop working correctly because after two days in a hotelroom everyting was normal again.

This lens is THE lens for the D700 and indeed works great. It's really too bad the popup flash casts a shadow when you use it at the 24-35mm range. For some reason the lens extends when going wide!?

This is a very good lens, but for the price I paid I expected no flash block at wideangle, better sealing at front and no weird stiffness because I used it one day in a moisturous environment.

May 2, 2009

mosierOfflineBuy and Sell: On

Registered: Feb 1, 2008Location: United StatesPosts: 1731

Review Date: Mar 31, 2009

Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $1,699.99
| Rating: 10

Pros:

Sharp Sharp Sharp! I love this lens on the D700. The price is worth it. Even with the 15-20 % increase. It's that good :)